


Kangaroo Love

by LightofEvolution



Series: Dramionic Drift - variation of drabbles, varying frequency [2]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Alternate Universe - Muggle, F/M, Zoo
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-15
Updated: 2020-08-15
Packaged: 2021-03-05 20:08:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,833
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25911061
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LightofEvolution/pseuds/LightofEvolution
Summary: Draco Malfoy loved his job as a zookeeper. And he loved working with Dr Hermione Granger. Though, his crush on her could be a bit of a dangerous distraction.
Relationships: Hermione Granger/Draco Malfoy
Series: Dramionic Drift - variation of drabbles, varying frequency [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1432549
Comments: 13
Kudos: 116





	Kangaroo Love

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Kyonomiko](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kyonomiko/gifts), [BoredRavenvlaw620](https://archiveofourown.org/users/BoredRavenvlaw620/gifts), [In_Dreams](https://archiveofourown.org/users/In_Dreams/gifts), [sarena](https://archiveofourown.org/users/sarena/gifts), [niffizzle](https://archiveofourown.org/users/niffizzle/gifts), [HeartOfAspen](https://archiveofourown.org/users/HeartOfAspen/gifts).



> This was written with the gentle encouragment of my lovely little nerd nook in the fandom, and it was inspired by watching too many zoo documentaries. I never wanted to write a Muggle AU - until now.
> 
> Thanks to Niffizzle - my hero. Beta extraordinaire. She has the patience of an angel when it comes to my grammar ("This isn't an English word." - "OOooh, no, it isn't???").

Draco Malfoy loved his job.

Every morning when he put his gear on, he thought about how blessed he was to pursue his dream.

Coming from a rich, noble family, Draco grew up with strict expectations and few personal freedoms. Yet his choice in career was when he had put his foot down. His father could seethe and threaten to disinherit him all he wanted; Draco would still return to his beloved workplace. 

Don’t get him wrong, he didn’t love everything about being a zookeeper at the Hogwarts Zoo of Wild Keeping and Wilderness Protection. For example, he hated getting the kangaroo babies vaccinated and chipped. They were fast and tried everything they could with their teeth and feet to prohibit the important and necessary procedure. And yet, Draco still walked into the kangaroo enclosure with a smile on his lips.

Because  _ she _ was the vet on duty for his area today.

Dr. Hermione Granger.

They had met in the zoo again after attending the same boarding school. His family had sent their children to the renowned school for more than two centuries, but Hermione had earned her place through hard work, with a scholarship to show for it. At first, Draco had found the girl annoying and over-achieving. But over the years, he had learned to appreciate her wit and intelligence. Although, with them having totally different circles of friends, they had been mere acquaintances. After school, the bright woman had left for veterinary studies at a distant university. He never expected to see her again. The day Hermione showed up at the zoo for her first day of work, Draco had almost fallen into the penguin pool — much to his colleague Theo’s amusement. 

That had been four years ago. And yes, their relationship had changed. Acquaintances had become friends, but Draco knew he wanted  _ more _ . 

But any thoughts about romance or even friendship had to wait. Draco needed to concentrate on the task at hand, no matter how adorable her smile was when she arrived on her bicycle, nor how attractive the blush colouring cheeks spoke of a fast ride through the park.

“Good morning, Draco!” she greeted and hopped off the bike.

“Good morning, Hermione,” he replied, adding teasingly, “why the rush? Did you have an important appointment with the otters again?”

She hit his shoulder with a playful slap. “You know very well that the otter babies are my weakness. They are just too cute.” She took her container with the syringes and other instruments from the bike.

Draco laughed and shouldered her second bag. “You are a woman with a soft heart, Doctor Granger.”

“Sometimes,” she said and grinned. “Now, let’s go. You needed to catch a kangaroo for me. Have you separated it from the others already?” 

“That has probably been the easiest part of the procedure.” Draco nodded and unlocked the door with his keys, keeping it open with his arm for her to follow. When Hermione entered and passed him by walking under his arm, he caught a drift of her scent. Naturally, she didn’t wear any perfume, for that could irritate the animals, so it was all her. 

He closed his eyes for a short moment, urging himself to focus. 

“Does it have a name yet?” She pointed at the young kangaroo waiting in a corner.

“No. But I think it’s male and has a mean streak, so I am probably naming him Lucius.”

“Draco, you can’t name every animal that doesn’t behave after your father!” Hermione remarked drily. She tilted her head, looking at the animal closely. “I think he looks a bit rough and thick-headed. So… Harry, if it’s a male.”

Draco snorted. “No, thank you. I don’t want to work with Potter daily and muck out his stall. Seven years of school with him was enough.”

“Don’t be like that. He’s my best friend and you know it.” She pouted and looked up at him from under her lashes. 

Suddenly, Draco grew very warm and his glasses fogged. “Sorry,” he murmured quietly, eyes firmly on the kangaroo. 

“You catch and hold it, and I’ll give him the vaccination first, then the chip?” she asked, ignoring his slight awkwardness. 

“You are the doc, Doc.”

The floppy ears of the small kangaroo twitched as it eyed Draco suspiciously. Slowly, the keeper approached the animal who had drawn back into a corner. “Good kangaroo. Stay there,” he addressed it with a calm voice. “It won’t hurt, I promise. Hermione is a brilliant vet.” 

From experience, Draco knew it didn’t matter what he said. His goal was to calm and distract the animals before he caught them. He had done it with many animals, and others attested that he had a smooth voice that lulled the animals into peace exceptionally well. Like a snake trying to charm his prey, as the Head Keeper, Severus, always joked. And today, it also worked on the kangaroo youngling. It looked at Draco with his big eyes, all suspicions forgotten. 

“Good boy.” Draco continued talking. Now that he was close enough, he could actually see that the animal didn’t have a pouch, meaning it was, indeed, male. “Do me a favour and —”

Draco dashed forward, one hand nabbing the kangaroo’s tail, the other gripping its neck. 

“—keep still when I catch you,” he finished. 

The calmness had ended when Draco had touched the animal, and now it was vivaciously trying to escape the keeper’s hands. But resistance was futile. 

Proudly, Draco sat down on a hay bale, wrangling the kangaroo to a firm hold between his legs. “Got him!” he announced to the waiting vet. “And as I guess, it is a male,” he informed Hermione who quickly wrote it down. The brunette started to work on the animal immediately, the two syringes already waiting in her hand. 

“Brilliant. Now keep it still.” Hermione kneeled and applied the vaccination with a practised move. Draco had seen her do this many times, but her ease and professionalism fascinated him every time. 

Once the first syringe had been emptied, she put the it between her lips to have the hands free for the thicker one with the microchip that served as an ID for this kangaroo boy. Of course, placing it was no problem for the pretty vet. While she searched for a place near the animal’s shoulder, Draco got distracted by her lush lips holding the syringe and a loose curl threatening to fall from behind her ear to her face. Gosh, she was such an impressive sight to behold — smart, witty, and beautiful. 

In fact, he must have been so distracted that he allowed the kangaroo to wriggle his head free from Draco’s grip and bite him.

“Ouch! Fuck!” he cursed, immediately feeling the blood trailing over his upper arm.

“What happened?” Hermione demanded to know.

“He bit me!” 

“I’m about to finish, then I’ll take care of you.”

Draco nodded grimly. It wasn’t the first and far from the worst time he had been bitten by an animal under his care, but it still stung. 

Hermione finished her treatment with a final functionality check of the freshly injected microchip. After the scanner beeped, she nodded, satisfied. “You can let him go now.”

Carefully, Draco placed the animal on the floor, from where it took off immediately. A few seconds later, he opened the door towards the outdoor area, and the small kangaroo hopped out without looking back. 

When he turned back around, he was met by Hermione’s wide gaze. “Gosh, Draco. That must hurt!” Hermione sounded a bit worried. 

He looked down at his arm where the blood trickled down from his skin to the sandy floor. “It’s alright,” he said with a shrug. “I’ve had worse.”

“Don’t play the strong man here!” she chastised. “Come sit in the light so I can treat you.”

He conceded, and happily so, because her hand reached out for his and guided him (on his uninjured side) to the better lit area. Her hand felt small in his, even though he knew she had a lot of power in her dainty fingers. It felt so good that he was almost thankful for having been bitten. 

“Sit down and stretch out your arm,” Hermione ordered, and he complied, resting atop a rock under one of the lamps. 

She fetched a swab from her box and gently sweeped the blood from the wound. 

“Thankfully, this is only superficial and won’t need stitches. But I need to disinfect it thoroughly.” Her voice was calm and professional.

“Are you even allowed to treat humans?” he joked, trying not to blush at the amused stare he received.

“ _ Homo sapiens _ is a Primate like the Orangutan is. I am allowed to treat them as well as the Gorillas. Thus, I can treat you.” Slipping on medical gloves, a smile crept up her face, and her lips curled upwards. He loved her smile.

“I have far less hair than an Orangutan or Gorilla.” 

While she cleaned the wound on his arm, her grin turned mischievous. “Do you? I have never seen you without a shirt on, but looking at your arms, there is definitely some hair on your body.”

Oh Lord, was she _ flirting _ with him?

He cleared his throat. “I think I feel a bit light-headed.”

A concerned frown appeared between Hermione’s face. “Do you? That shouldn’t happen; the wound isn’t that serious.” Gently, she turned his arm, checking for more damage. 

It was time to take a step forward. “Not because of my arm, but because I want to ask you out.“

She appeared confused. “We go out at least once a month, Draco. With Theo and Harry and—“

“Not with them. I want to take you out for dinner. In a nice restaurant.” The words fell out of his mouth on their own.

She hesitated to answer, and his heart nearly stopped beating. He prayed he hadn’t ruined everything by offering a step in a direction that was more than platonic. Because Draco genuinely liked Hermione and wouldn’t risk their friendship over anything. 

Then, slowly, as if she had needed a moment to think through all possibilities, her genuine smile stretched across her lips. 

“Just you and me? That would be nice,” she said, a surprising shyness in her voice.

“Just you and me. No kangaroos. No penguins.” Draco had found his confidence again and smiled back at her, relieved. 

“No lions or snakes?” Hermione grinned now.

“I solemnly swear. Just two members of the  _ Homo sapiens _ species on a date. So I’ll pick you up tomorrow at seven?” 

Hermione nodded, packing the rest of her bag before slowly walking to the door. “Just try not to get bitten by a kangaroo until then. I would like you whole on our date.” Another smile and she was gone.

Draco reached for a broom and started cleaning the kangaroo pen. 

He loved his job. 

And maybe Dr. Hermione Granger would love him one day as well.


End file.
